Do you support a path to citizenship for Dreamers?

Story TOpics

CENTENNIAL, Colo. (AP) — A former Colorado lawman with a record so distinguished he was once honored as the nation’s sheriff of the year now finds himself in a jail that was named for him, accused of offering methamphetamine in exchange for sex from a male acquaintance.

Patrick Sullivan, 68 — handcuffed, dressed in an orange jail uniform and walking with a cane — watched Wednesday as a judge raised his bail amount to a half-million dollars and sent him to the Patrick J. Sullivan Jr. Detention Facility.

The current sheriff, Grayson Robinson, who worked as undersheriff for Mr. Sullivan from 1997 until he took over the job in 2002, said the department was shocked and saddened at his arrest.

Sheriff Robinson said the case is still under investigation, including where and how Mr. Sullivan might have gotten the drugs. He declined to say if authorities suspect Mr. Sullivan of using drug, or if others might be charged.

Sheriff Robinson told the Denver Post that a search of Mr. Sullivan’s home led to the discovery of a large amount of adult homosexual pornography, which is not illegal.

The Post reported that court documents in several other cases show that Mr. Sullivan in recent months had been associating with young men fighting an addiction to meth. When the former sheriff was questioned about it, he said he was working in a state drug-treatment program.

Mr. Sullivan later told detectives he was on a meth drug task force and was helping recovering addicts get clean, according to another report.

The Colorado attorney general’s office said there was no record of Mr. Sullivan’s working on a meth task force.

Mr. Sullivan’s arrest has many in suburban Denver’s Arapahoe County, where he held sway for nearly two decades, wondering what happened to the tough-as-nails lawman they once knew — a law officer known for his heroism in saving two deputies and for his concern about teenage drug use.

“This isn’t the Pat I know,” said Peg Ackerman, a lobbyist for the County Sheriffs of Colorado who often worked with him on legislation. She said he was concerned about drug use in schools and was a chief of security at a school district.

At the brief hearing, Judge William Sylvester told Mr. Sullivan not to contact anyone involved in the case.

Mr. Sullivan came to the attention of law enforcement after an Oct. 4 call to authorities from a home in Centennial, according to an arrest affidavit. The deputy who responded had worked for Mr. Sullivan and knew who he was.

After investigating further, the deputy learned from two confidential informants that Mr. Sullivan was dealing meth but would sell it only if the buyers had sex with him, the document stated. He was arrested after police set up a sting at a home.

Deputies found that Mr. Sullivan had handed someone a bag of meth and had another bag on him when he was searched, according to the affidavit. Both bags weighed less than a gram.

Mr. Sullivan served as sheriff from 1984 until his retirement in 2002.

In 2002, then-U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo praised him on his retirement, citing Mr. Sullivan for promoting homeland security and for being named Sheriff of the Year by the National Sheriffs’ Association.

In 1989, Mr. Sullivan was hailed as a hero. During a gunman’s rampage, he rescued two deputies after crashing his truck through a fence and protecting them while they were loaded into the vehicle.

While those who know Mr. Sullivan were puzzled by the news, some said they weren’t surprised that a person of his stature could get involved. They said meth users will do almost anything to feed their habit and often hurt others in the process.

“This drug knows no economic, social, professional or occupational boundaries,” said state Rep. Ken Summers, who served on a legislative meth task force.

The Washington Times Comment Policy

The Washington Times is switching its third-party commenting system from Disqus to Spot.IM. You will need to either create an account with Spot.im or if you wish to use your Disqus account look under the Conversation for the link "Have a Disqus Account?". Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.